Sale of Golden State Warriors Nearly Complete?

The San Fransisco Chronicle has sources with slightly conflicting information about how close the deal is to being completed with Larry Ellison: “Billionaire software titan Larry Ellison is close to acquiring the Warriors from the team’s current owner, Chris Cohan, sources close to the negotiations said Tuesday night. According to those sources, Ellison, CEO of Oracle Corp., outbid 24-Hour Fitness founder Mark Mastrov, among others. If the current deal is completed, Ellison would control 80 percent of the franchise, and incumbent minority owners Michael Marks, Jim Davidson, John Thompson and Fred Harman would retain their stakes. Sources vary greatly on the final price tag, ranging from those who believe Ellison will pay close to his initial bid of $315 million to others who think the price tag will top the $401 million cost, the NBA record, of the Phoenix Suns in 2004. There are sources who believe the deal was completed late Tuesday night, and others who characterized the conclusion merely as ‘imminent.’”